South Africa, ITC to host first-ever Global Small Business Ministerial meeting during G20

Johannesburg, May 22 (PTI) South Africa will partner with the International Trade Centre (ITC) to host the first-ever Global SME Ministerial meeting in July this year as part of a range of initiatives by the country during its presidency of the G20.

Ministers from across the world that are dedicated to the millions of small businesses that form the backbone of the global economy are expected to attend the meeting, scheduled to be hosted in Johannesburg from July 22 to 24.

“[South Africa], through the Department of Small Business Development has partnered with ITC to co-host this inaugural ministerial meeting, which will centre around the theme ‘Navigating New Business Frontiers’, focusing on how SMEs can drive economic transformation in their countries by enabling three key areas — access to finance, digital connectivity and green transition,” the department said in a statement.

“Ministers will work during the ministerial on these three areas for SMEs and will set a roadmap to address the most pressing challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises to operate, develop or scale up. SMEs make up 90 per cent of businesses worldwide,” it added.

The Global SME Ministerial will include a Business and Innovation Space where policymakers will also engage with private sector leaders to drive innovations by small businesses, boost networks between SMEs and potential investors, showcase success stories and provide the ministers with tangible experiences from different continents.

“Under the umbrella of the SME Ministerial, the ITC will organise a leadership dialogue for the global network of Trade Promotion Organisations, feeding into the ministerial round tables at the meeting,” said Stella Tembisa Ndabeni, Minister of Small Business Development of South Africa.

“The G20 represents a vital platform for fostering global cooperation and collective action, where the world’s leading economies come together not just to discuss challenges, but to find solutions that drive sustainable growth, reduce inequality, and promote shared prosperity,” Ndabeni said.

ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton said that the world needs a space where SME issues can be discussed at the highest levels.

“A space where we can create roadmaps, together, for action. A space that opens new opportunities for cooperation and sharing ideas. This will be a space that will not lose sight of the big picture goals, nor the small and medium-sized businesses whose successes or failures will define our future. This kind of space is sorely needed,” Coke-Hamilton said.

“Small firms drive tangible, lasting change from the ground up on global issues from climate change to women’s economic empowerment to digital connectivity, if they have the skills and resources to act. They are not only beneficiaries but drivers of sustainable, inclusive trade,” she added.

The organisers said they believed that developing countries can take steps to stabilise the global trading system, at a time of uncertainty and instability.

This could be achieved by moving away from commodity extraction to value addition, investing in diversification of products and markets, and strengthening regional links to reduce dependency on a handful of countries, they said.

“South Africa’s G20 presidency marks the first time the African continent hosts the intergovernmental forum, on the heels of the African Union becoming a permanent member, bringing together development and economic priorities,” the statement from the department concluded.

The ITC is the joint agency of the World Trade Organisation and the United Nations. It supports small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and transition economies to become more competitive in global markets.

The South African Department of Small Business Development creates an enabling legislative and policy environment to support the growth and sustainability of small, medium and micro enterprises in South Africa. It also provides financial and non-financial support for these institutions. PTI FH GSP GSP